Chandra SteeleThe Best Shopping Apps to Compare PricesAre you getting a deal or getting ripped off? Stop the guesswork; these are the best price comparison apps to help you scout out discounts this holiday shopping season.

While contestants on The Price is Right might be able to guess the price of pretty much any item within pennies, in the real world, price-comparison apps do the work for you.

It's a welcome relief since at this time of year stores are filled with enough flashing lights and screaming crowds to turn a holiday shopping trip into a full-on family feud right there in the mall.

For the past few holiday seasons, these apps have been saving shoppers the trouble of searching for a deal online before driving to local stores to see if they can beat it. There are apps to help the tech-deficient choose a gift for the tech-addicted, lighten the load of loyalty cards, predict prices and product releases to minimize buyer's (and receiver's) remorse, and offer up rewards.

Price-comparison apps merely need to snap a barcode and perform a search to turn out all of the above, making the marketplace crowded. Because we don't want you to start your holiday shopping panic before you've even left an app store, PCMag has found the best apps out there.

1
Amazon

(Available on iOS, Android)The Amazon app has a barcode scanner you can use when you're in a store to immediately find the item on Amazon and check its price. Just choose the camera icon next to the search bar and hold it over a barcode. The app also includes Alexa, which can play music or audiobooks while you shop.

2
Walmart Savings Catcher

(Available on iOS, Android)Walmart Savings Catcher is a feature of Walmart's regular app. After shopping at Walmart, you can use it to scan your receipt and compare prices of some items against competitors' advertised deals and get the difference back on a Walmart Rewards eGift Card.

3
ShopSavvy

4
BuyVia

(Available on iOS, Android)
Buying a tech gift this holiday season? Download BuyVia to your iOS or Android device. It compares prices at national and local outlets and lets you set up alerts (including location-based) for products. At a store and unsure if the price on the shelf is the lowest you can find? Use the UPC barcode scanner to get an answer on the spot. BuyVia also simplifies the tech jargon for gift buyers and quotes reviews (including PCMag's) in its product descriptions, recommending who it would make a good gift for and how they can use it.

5
ScanLife

(Available on iOS, Android)
Compare prices online and locally with ScanLife. ScanLife also has real-life user reviews of products, can share your finds on Facebook, and lets you earn rewards in the form of gift cards.

6
TTPM

(Available on iOS, Android)Toy stores are chaotic and harrowing in any season, but around the holidays, they're guaranteed to turn you into a Grinch. Use TTPM instead and save your sanity as well as your cash. The app puts toys, electronics, sporting goods, and more gifts for kids in one spot and compares prices across stores. You can search, browse, or scan a barcode to find gifts and prices and watch video reviews to help find the perfect gift.

7
Yroo

(Available on iOS, Android)Yroo offers instant price comparison but it also shows you the price history of an item over 30, 60, or 90 days, so you get a clearer idea of what kind of deal you're getting. It has a barcode scanner for in-store shopping decisions, price alerts for sales, and digital coupons.

8
Mycartsavings

(Available on iOS, Android)Whether your cart is online or IRL, Mycartsavings has a basket full of bounty for you. The app will track the price of an item and alert you when it reaches the amount you're willing to pay. If you're multitasking, which is especially likely at this time of year, you can search the app with your voice.

About the Author

Chandra is senior features writer at PCMag.com. She got her tech journalism start at CMP/United Business Media, beginning at Electronic Buyers' News, then making her way over to TechWeb and VARBusiness.com. Chandra's happy to make a living writing, something she didn't think she could do and why she chose to major in political science at Barnard Co... See Full Bio

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